Two Teams Had Concerns About Culpepper

ORLANDO — Several other NFL teams shopping for quarterbacks deemed Daunte Culpepper an intriguing option before the Dolphins acquired him from Minnesota for a second-round draft pick.

Two, however, decided he was not the ideal option for them.

Tuesday, Tennessee Titans coach Jeff Fisher and Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick cited Culpepper's serious knee injury as among their concerns when deciding not to make a deal for him.

"That has a lot to do with the level of interest that we had," said Fisher, who watched tape of Culpepper's pre-injury performances. "Put yourself in a situation where you are going to make a deal right now, for a guy who won't be on the field until June at the earliest, it's a hard thing for us. Not necessarily a hard thing for most people, but it's a hard thing to come to terms with for us."

Fisher said that after the Vikings contacted the Titans, "we talked, and kicked some things around."

"I even had one conversation with Daunte," Fisher said. "But that was it. He indicated to us he had every intention of staying in Florida. He only had so much interest in us. At that point, we went on. We didn't pursue anything beyond that."

The Titans still have veteran Steve McNair on the roster.

The Ravens still plan to start fourth-year quarterback Kyle Boller. Billick looked at Culpepper and Drew Brees, among other quarterback possibilities, "long and hard." Billick said he had no question about Culpepper's ability, calling him a special talent.

"He's so physical in the pocket, he can make the big play, he makes things happen, he can extend the play," Billick said. But Billick had the same issue with Culpepper as with Brees, who is recovering from shoulder surgery: health.

"Those two injuries are injuries that you have to factor in and be very conscious of for this year," Billick said. "Beyond that, they'll be fine. But you have to be very careful of those injuries for this year. Each team has its own set of perspectives on it. For us, the injuries were enough of a concern in our situation."

Would NFL coaches be comfortable starting a newly acquired quarterback whose injury forced him to miss the majority of offseason work?

Most of the NFL coaches surveyed Tuesday said, in Culpepper's case, it wouldn't be.

"He's a veteran guy, so it's not like you're dealing with a young player, so he's been there, he's done that," Texans coach Gary Kubiak said. "A player like that can make up a lot more ground mentally. He can be fine."

Yet some of those same coaches emphasized the importance of that time.

"A quarterback needs repetition to learn the offense so it becomes second nature to him," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said, "regardless of whether it's the audible system, going through his reads. The only way you get better is getting reps."